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27 November 2024
Issue: 8096 / Categories: Legal News , Collective action , Competition , Class actions
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Huge claim could be brought against search giant

A former judge is bringing an opt-out claim potentially worth billions of pounds against Google.

Roger Kaye KC, represented by collective redress firm KP Law, alleges Google has abused its dominant position in the online search advertising market. According to KP Law, the claim is fully funded and, if successful, could give a route to redress for thousands of businesses that may have had to pay more for search advertising than they should have done.

The firm intends to file an application for a collective proceedings order at the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) before Christmas. This will be on an opt-out basis.

Commercial silk Kaye KC, of Enterprise Chambers, is a retired deputy High Court judge with broad experience including hearing IT disputes and group litigation in the High Court and overseeing suspected cartel cases in the CAT.

Duncan Hedar, KP Law partner, said Kaye’s case was that ‘businesses have overpaid for services offered by Google… and it’s only right that they be able to recover those losses’.

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Laytons ETL—Maximilian Kraitt

Laytons ETL—Maximilian Kraitt

Commercial firm strengthens real estate disputes team with associate hire

Switalskis—three appointments

Switalskis—three appointments

Firm appoints three directors to board

Browne Jacobson—seven promotions

Browne Jacobson—seven promotions

Six promoted to partner and one to legal director across UK and Ireland offices

NEWS

From blockbuster judgments to procedural shake-ups, the courts are busy reshaping litigation practice. Writing in NLJ this week, Professor Dominic Regan of City Law School hails the Court of Appeal's 'exquisite judgment’ in Mazur restoring the role of supervised non-qualified staff, and highlights a ‘mammoth’ damages ruling likened to War and Peace, alongside guidance on medical reporting fees, where a pragmatic 25% uplift was imposed

Momentum is building behind proposals to restrict children’s access to social media—but the legal and practical challenges are formidable. In NLJ this week, Nick Smallwood of Mills & Reeve examines global moves, including Australia’s under-16 ban and the UK's consultation
Reforms designed to rebalance landlord-tenant relations may instead penalise leaseholders themselves. In this week's NLJ, Mike Somekh of The Freehold Collective warns that the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 risks creating an ‘underclass’ of resident-controlled freehold companies
Timing is everything—and the Court of Appeal has delivered clarity on when proceedings are ‘brought’. In his latest 'Civil way' column for NLJ, Stephen Gold explains that a claim is issued for limitation purposes when the claim form is delivered to the court, even if fees are underpaid
The traditional ‘single, intensive day’ of financial dispute resolution (FDR) may be due for a rethink. Writing in NLJ this week, Rachel Frost-Smith and Lauren Guiler of Birketts propose a ‘split FDR’ model, separating judicial evaluation from negotiation
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